Former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose has claimed that the Accord Party spent at least N40bn during the August 15 Osun State governorship election.
Fayose made the allegation during a video interview with TVC journalist Nifemi Oguntoye, posted on the journalist’s X account on Wednesday.
His comments came after Afrobeats singer David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, alleged that the All Progressives Congress spent N110bn on vote-buying during the election.
Davido, who is the nephew of re-elected Osun Governor and Accord Party candidate Ademola Adeleke, also claimed that the Accord Party did not spend money during the election but relied on the support of Osun residents.
Fayose disputed that account, saying both major parties spent heavily during the poll.
“Accord Party led the opponents. The money that went to that election from the Accord party itself cannot be under N40 billion. I stand to be corrected,” Fayose said.
He also alleged that more than N7.5bn was distributed to various local governments and wards shortly before the election. Fayose, however, did not provide evidence to substantiate the figures.
The former governor said both parties spent beyond the legal limit for election expenditure.
“The fact remains that both parties spent stupendously. They spent beyond the threshold like every other political party,” he said.
Fayose also questioned the timing of the alleged distribution of funds, referring to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s freezing of accounts linked to the election-related controversy.
He argued that money intended for residents could have been distributed much earlier rather than shortly before the poll.
The Osun election was won by Adeleke, who secured 511,067 votes against APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji’s 444,815, giving the Accord candidate a margin of 66,252 votes. INEC results showed Adeleke won 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas.
Fayose attributed a significant portion of Adeleke’s winning margin to his stronghold in Ede, saying the political strength of the Adeleke family in the area played a major role.
He also urged the APC to challenge the election result in court if the party believed there were grounds to do so, particularly over the results recorded in Ede.
Fayose further said President Bola Tinubu could have influenced the election in favour of the APC if he had chosen to do so, but instead described the President’s handling of the poll as magnanimous.
On the implications of the Osun result for the 2027 general election, Fayose dismissed suggestions that the outcome had significantly strengthened the opposition.
He argued that opposition parties had failed to unite, which he said had weakened their prospects ahead of the 2027 elections.
